Rehab but still winded walking up stairs

[razewsda]

I had a mechanical mitral valve replacement earlier this year. Have always worked out almost daily for the last 20 yrs or so. Complications like severe bloody noses ( blood thinner + weak blood vessels in my rt nostril) - then an accident causing a non displaced fracture of my C5 vertebrae put me in a neck brace for 3 months over the summer (it has been quite a year!!!!) kept me from a normal w/o routine. I still walked every day a few miles during this time. When the brace came off @ labor day, I resumed my gym routine of weights for toning and 30 min on a treadmill. My cardiologist asked me to stay @ 100 BPM inititally and I could do that with a 3MPH pace hardly breaking a sweat. He's released me to go higher a week ago. Despite this almost 3 months of working out, walking up a set of stairs leaves me winded. Seems on a level surface I can do almost anything but stairs a challenge. My cardiologist thinks it will diminish eventually but I'm not so sure??? Has anyone else experienced this?? I feel good - best in a year - but very frustrated with this "walking up stairs" problem. Thanks!!!!

 

[SumoRunner]

... He's released me to go higher a week ago. Despite this almost 3 months of working out, walking up a set of stairs leaves me winded. Seems on a level surface I can do almost anything but stairs a challenge.

Yeah, the legs are weak. Going up stairs you're using all the largest muscles and they haven't had a good workout in many months. 3 mph in a TM doesn't do it. Give it time and they'll come around.

BTW, I'm just a few miles away in Latham. Here's my pics from the recent Schenectady Stockade-athon 15K. I'm in red & white. The guy next to me in the Beatles shirt had a valve replacement one year ago and also ran the 15K. There are several other cardiac athletes locally.

https://picasaweb.google.com/SumoRunner/StockadeAthon2013#5945170880544964930

 

[razewsda]

Yeah, the legs are weak. Going up stairs you're using all the largest muscles and they haven't had a good workout in many months. 3 mph in a TM doesn't do it. Give it time and they'll come around.

BTW, I'm just a few miles away in Latham. Here's my pics from the recent Schenectady Stockade-athon 15K. I'm in red & white. The guy next to me in the Beatles shirt had a valve replacement one year ago and also ran the 15K. There are several other cardiac athletes locally.

https://picasaweb.google.com/SumoRunner/StockadeAthon2013#5945170880544964930

Thanks for the note and encouragement - am in Florida thru the spring -

 

[epstns]

If you're using a treadmill, you could try what my cardiac rehab team used. They had us (the ones who could tolerate it) walk as fast as possible on an inclined treadmill. They increased the incline percentage until we hit our target heart rate, then challenged us to keep the pace for 15-20 minutes. It worked for me. I've gone from a "complicated" recovery to my old, pre-surgical gym routine in just over a year, and feel better now than I did in the years prior to surgery.

P.S. I still use the inclined treadmill instead of running -- my knees wouldn't tolerate the pounding any more.

 

[ski girl]

Also, you may be anemic! After I got a mech valve I got so badly anemic they were about to give me a transfusion. New mech valves take time to grow a slime layer and until then, they smash your red blood cells every time the valve closes.

So in addition to the recommendations above, get an iron supplement. You could also get a blood test for anemia, but the prescription if you do have it is iron supplementation anyway, so you could skip the needle poke!